When looking at changing your hair to an auburn hair color you will find that there are many various shades for you to choose. Enough in fact to be able to find an auburn color to suite you whether you are looking for a subtle or stand out color change.
A true auburn color is a copper color with a slight brown base and just a hint of gold.
Although the range of shades and levels in auburn hair colors do go from a mostly brown color that has a hint of a red gold undertone all the way up to a fiery red shade.
The big secret to looking fantastic with your auburn hair color change is
- To work with the right red hair shade for your natural skin tone.
- Deciding how much of a statement you wish to make with your new hair color.
In changing your hair to a strong dark red color or a copper red you will be making a very strong statement.
Vibrant red hair is what I call a high impact hair color much the same as a light ash blonde hair color.
Meaning that you will certainly grab attention and turn heads.
Auburn Hair Color Portrays A Sexy Image.
The image of a woman with auburn hair is that of sexy, manipulative and powerful.
In fact, in ancient Egypt and Rome women with red hair were viewed as having super natural powers.
Whilst in both art and literature the female temptress is quite often is portrayed as a woman with a head of red hair.
Both Botticelli and Michelangelo’s paintings from the renaissance period being a very good examples of this.
A red-haired woman was always prominent and a main stay for the temptress in a lot of their works.
It was during this period that women would lift their natural hair color.
By using a mixture of lemon juice and saffron and the help of the sun’s rays.
To achieve a copper reflection on their hair when it was seen in the light.
The Auburn Hair Color Range Mix.
Auburn as a color lies in between a red and a brown when it comes to the color spectrum.
With its primary tone being red or copper.
Strawberry Blondes – the lightest of all the red auburn hair shades being a mix of gold and red.
Light & Medium Auburn Colors – are a mixture of a light golden red and a light brown.
Bright Coppers – are achieved with a mix of red and orange.
Red Coppers – red and orange mixed with brown achieves this rich color.
Dark Auburn Colors – are a mix of rich warm browns plus a golden red.
Which auburn hair color should you choose?
As I have mentioned before you need think about the image you want to project.
Do you want to stand out and be noticed by making a statement?
If so this can mean high maintenance on your part. Stopping your color fading to fast is an essential part to keep the color looking fantastic.
Or
Do you want to liven up your hair color but prefer a low maintenance program?
A lot of my Asian clients who have dark hair tend to prefer a more natural look.
In which case I recommend them to pick a more neutral auburn shade.
Choosing The Best Color For Your Skin Tone.
A common belief when wanting a color that will flatter your face.
Is to pick a tone of color that will complement your skin tone.
But if your purpose is to stand out and get noticed wearing any auburn hair color you want regardless of skin tone would work.
As an overall guide when looking at a global (full head) color change think.
Light skin tone – If you have a fair skin tone go with a light strawberry blonde to a bright cooper red.
Medium skin tone – As your skin has more pigments you can look at a rich cooper blonde to medium auburn shades.
Dark skin tone – For a natural look a medium to dark auburn tone. Although a deep red mahogany would work well if you are looking for something more dramatic.
Should you want to stand out and get noticed wearing any auburn hair color you want regardless of skin tone is ok.
Creating An Optical Illusion With Auburn Copper Color.
Having said that I believe that today the old rules of matching skin tone and the skins undertones are not as important as they used to be.
In any artistic work rules are there to be broken.
You could in fact include virtually any auburn shade you wanted into your hairstyle and still make it complimentary.
Your hairstylist could use one, two or even three different tones of the same color to give an illusion of depth and shade to your hairstyle.
Three coloring techniques that work to create an optical illusion.
Balayage – Hand painting towards the bottom two thirds of your hair with one or two shades of brighter and lighter auburn tones.
Lowlights and Highlights – Using a darker shade and a lighter shade of auburn to highlight the hair. This will give a look of more dimension to any hair style.
Face Contouring – If having a deeper auburn color all over you may think of having lighter auburn fins of hair placed around your face. Face contouring creates softness or to accentuate certain features.
To me wearing any auburn hair color you want regardless of skin tone is ok. It all comes down to the placement of the colors. Whether you finished look will be complementary or not.
Will You Need To Bleach Your Hair Before Applying The Color..
Whether you will need to pre-bleach your hair before being able to achieve your chosen auburn shade depends on how light you wish to go.
Because a hair tint will deposit color if you wish to go darker or add a richer tone. But is only be able to lighten your natural hair color by up to three levels.
In other words the lighter your natural hair color the lighter you may go without the use of a bleaching product.
As an example. If your natural hair color is a dark brown which is classed as a level two.
You would only be able to look at achieving an auburn color at a level five or lower.
Should you want a lighter auburn color than this on all or certain parts of your hair.
Some form of pre-bleaching would be required.
Know how how light your dark hair color would need to be bleached here.
Two Important Points When Coloring Your Hair Auburn.
Point 1.
Red hair colors do fade rather quickly. I highly recommend that you shampoo with a sulfate free shampoo as these shampoos are not as harsh on your hair therefore helping you to maintain your hair color longer.
Having your hair in good condition will help to retain the red pigments for longer. Because these small red pigments will easily wash out if the strands of your hair are dry and damaged.
Having a good home care regime to help keep your red hair is a must. Check my post on washing colored hair.
Point 2.
The good news is that the more times that you have your auburn hair color touched up and layered onto your hair the longer the color will stay.
And a great way to touch up your auburn hair in between salon visits is with a hair toner. Because a toner will add vibrancy by introducing extra color pigment to any faded hairs. Read about using a hair toner here.
Thank you for taking the time to read what I write. If you liked it share with a friend.
